Greetings from Laurel Canyon!
Did she wake you up to tell you that / It was only a change of plan? / Dream up, dream up, let me fill your cup
Yesterday was Veterans Day. No school for the kid so it was more quiet than most. These canyon mornings have been very cold, so I chose to have coffee in bed and read the iPad and listened to ol’ Neil’s Harvest album.
Over the past few weeks it’s dawned on me more than once that Neil Young songs are no longer available on Spotify. Have you ever looked closely at your old copy of Harvest? The original package concept was to have it entirely biodegradable. The album, now 50, has a distinct California wintery, stoney, reflective quality that I found as smooth as my my morning brew.
I recall an early ’90s Neil solo, acoustic show. My good pal Barry (aka The Double B) and I were seated in the fourth row among many friends. I think Rick (Rubin) and Anthony (Kiedis) were next to us. Neil came out and sat on a stool surrounded by acoustic guitars. He picked one or two up and hit a few strings until he found a “friend” tuned to his liking. Then he simply busted into a spot on version of “Old Man.”
When the song was done the crowd erupted into pandaemonium. As bouquets of flowers showered the stage, the crowd simultaneously screamed their favorite Neil song.
I screamed, “A maid, a maid, a maid!”
Indeed a man does need a maid.
Check out this week’s episode. I think it turned out pretty cool.
Idelic Single of the Week: Special Interest – (Herman’s) House
